Zambia Research Foundation director Dr Mbita Chitala declared the August 13 general election not credible, warning that the vote has left the country fractured. He called for a government of national unity to heal what he described as the deep governance wounds the election…

Zambia Research Foundation director Dr Mbita Chitala declared the August 13 general election not credible, warning that the vote has left the country fractured. He called for a government of national unity to heal what he described as the deep governance wounds the election inflicted on the nation.

In a statement setting out his case, Dr Chitala, a co-founder of the MMD in 1990, listed a series of failures he said had compromised the polls. He cited a six-hour blackout at the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ), reports of stolen ballots in Mandevu Constituency, tear gas lobbed into a vote tallying centre in Kabwe and a variance of more than 800,000 votes.

Those failures, he said, warranted an independent audit of all 13,529 polling stations.

The central charge in his statement concerns the closure of the courts during the window for challenging the presidential result. Dr Chitala placed the shutdown above every other grievance arising from the election.

“The closure of all courts on 24th August 2026 during the seven-day petition window under Article 103 is the most urgent constitutional crisis,” he said.

He added that the challenge had to take an unusual route. “A petition was filed electronically through Chief Justice Mumba Malila after physical filing became impossible.”

Governance activist Brebner Changala turned the same issue on the legal profession. He accused the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) of abetting a breach of the Constitution by remaining silent on the closure of superior courts during the seven days allowed for filing the presidential petition.

Mr Changala demanded full disclosure on who ordered the shutdown at a time when the opposition was expected to file its challenge to the disputed election.

“I am asking for full clarity and disclosure on why the courts were closed at a critical moment of a seven-day requirement by the Republican Constitution for filing a presidential petition,” he said.

The activist described the closure as an assault on the Judiciary by the Executive that weakens the separation of powers. He said the lawyers’ body had failed in its duty.

“LAZ, as defender of the rule of law, should have condemned the abrupt closure of the Judiciary which botched the electoral process,” Mr Changala said.

He also questioned the decision by Chief Justice Dr Mumba Malila to swear in President Hakainde Hichilema while acknowledging that a petition was before the Constitutional Court. Administering the presidential oath with a petition pending, he said, was a serious constitutional violation, and the only proper course would be for Dr Malila to resign on moral grounds.

Mr Changala pointed to former Chief Justice Matthew Ngulube, who resigned on principle, and commended Judge Catherine Makungu for stepping aside to preserve institutional credibility. In his view, the Judiciary under its current leadership is compromised, its integrity now on trial, while the international community closely monitors developments.

Beyond the polls themselves, Dr Chitala raised concerns about what he called the selective prosecution of opponents. He cited the 2024 conviction of Patriotic Front (PF) secretary general Raphael Nakacinda for defaming the President after the offence had been repealed.

He also linked the rising tension to two further developments. The first is what he described as the assassination of former Minister of Transport and Communication Mutotwe Kafwaya. The second is the post-election treason charges against National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity (NRPUP) leader Brian Mundubile and his running mate Makebi Zulu.

To support his case, Dr Chitala drew on reports by Human Rights Watch, Freedom House and a UN Rapporteur on the restriction of opposition rallies under the Public Order Act and the harassment of journalists. He also questioned judicial independence following the suspension of three Constitutional Court judges in September 2024.

Having set out the problem, the former MMD founder turned to the remedy. He said his statement was intended to provide a factual framework for dialogue, truth and reform, and was inspired by Chipata Bishop George Lungu‘s call for reconciliation.

His proposal is an eight-pillar national reconciliation and constitutional restoration process. It would cover political dialogue, a review of political prisoners, independent electoral fact-finding, constitutional justice, security-sector neutrality, electoral reform, a national compact and a government of national unity modelled on those formed in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Dr Chitala was clear that such a process could not become a cover for wrongdoing. Reconciliation, he said, should not mean impunity, but must follow truth, justice, reconciliation and reform.

His intervention comes amid high political tension after the August 13 vote. That tension has been fed by the treason charges against Mr Mundubile and Mr Zulu, the killing of Mr Kafwaya and unresolved grievances over the stoppage of vote counting and results announcements, as well as the closure of courts as the opposition prepared to challenge the presidential result.

The demands for an audit, a reconciliation process and answers on the courts closure now stand before the Government. President Hichilema addresses Parliament on Friday